Did you know that Ford made jeeps in WW2?
When I bought my first WW2 jeep, it was sold to me as a 1941 “Willies”. And me being the expert, I thought some crazy farmer had welded in a Ford script patch after cutting out a tailgate in the jeep. Little did I know in 1981 that Ford also built jeeps during the war. It was sometime later that I found out that Ford actually built their own model of a jeep–the Ford GP.
Ford was the largest and most financially stable war-time producer of the jeep.
Their production efforts begin with the Ford GP Pygmy pilot model. The Pygmy was equipped with a modified tractor engine rated at 45 hp. It was considered a fairly modern engine for its day. Ford was selected along with the other two producers (American Bantam Car Company and Willys-Overland) of the jeep to build 1500 examples for further Army testing.
The Ford GP was the pre-standardized production model built by Ford. Because the Willys vehicle was not ready for production in time both Bantam and Ford built more than the original contracted 1500. Bantam built approximately 2,600 Bantam BRCs and Ford built approximately 4,450 Ford GPs.
For more about 1941 Ford GPs see Jeep – Its development and procurement under the Quartermaster Corps, 1940-1942
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